White Knight

by Ingrid Seymour

  “NO!”

  I pushed him, pressed my hands to his chest and shoved him as hard as I could. He wasn’t expecting it, not after I’d been cowering, letting him intimidate me like a wolf intimidates a rabbit.

  Rook Neculai staggered backward, his eyes widening as he tripped on the edge of the sidewalk and stumbled onto the street right in front of the speeding carriage.

  The animals reared and screamed as they crashed into the White Rook, trampling him under their heavy legs. The driver pulled on the reins, but the carriage continued forward, its momentum too great to be stopped.

  The big wooden wheels rolled over Rook Neculai, crushing his legs, his chest, his skull with a sickening crunch of bones.

  I stood paralyzed, watching it all happen as if time were running through a curtain of thick honey.

  The horses making terrible sounds of horror. Their legs breaking as they lost control of themselves. The carriage barreling through, then tipping on its side and crashing, splintering, cracking. The driver rolling on the ground. The passengers screaming as their gold plated carriage tumbled.

  And worse, bright red blood seeping into Neculai’s white uniform, a red stain growing and growing.

  He was dead. Dead.

  I had killed him.

  CHAPTER 4

  I went willingly with the Sentries as they escorted me back to the White Palace. I had killed Rook Neculai, pushed him in front of a speeding carriage. The wheels ran his body over, turning him into pulp.

  The guards at the front gate looked surprised when I, the First Pawn of the Second Quadrant, arrived with three Sentries at my back.

  Sentries were of lower rank than any Board members, and they had no business escorting Pawns unless trouble was afoot, and there certainly was.

  “Let us in and take us to Knight Kelsus,” I said before my escort had a chance to speak.

  If I was to have a chance of surviving this, Kelsus was my only hope. He was lenient, and he might take my side. I was a member of his Quadrant, after all.

  The guards allowed us through the gates and, while one of them stayed back, the other walked to the dining hall with us.

  No one was around, for which I was grateful. It was our day off, so most of the Board members were enjoying themselves down in the city. At least I was spared that humiliation. The gods knew there would be enough to suffer once the Knights found out I had killed one of their Rooks.

  Our boots tapped against the stone floor of the dining hall as we made our way toward the back where both Knights kept their offices.

  At the door, I paused, my heart wreaking havoc inside my chest. What would happen to me? The answer lay on the other side, and I didn’t want to hear it. I didn’t want confirmation that death was the only consequence for what I’d done.

  The Sentry commander who had taken control of the situation at the scene of the crime gave me a nod of encouragement. The man had treated me fairly and graciously, considering the circumstances. He seemed to believe my story that Rook Neculai had tried to kill me, so I’d killed him first.

  I knocked on the door and prayed that Knight Ferko was not there. What would The Decapitator do when she found out I had killed her Rook?

  “Come in,” Knight Kelsus called.

  Taking a deep breath, I turned the knob and pushed the door open. It swung on its hinges to reveal both Knights sitting behind their desks and looking up at me.

  One short beat passed then they were both on their feet.

  “First Pawn Flagfall,” Knight Kelsus said, “is something the matter?”

  I didn’t know what to say, how to begin to explain what I had done, so I nodded to the Sentry commander to indicate he could speak.

  The Sentry saluted, extending his right hand toward the floor and clicking his heels. “Knight Kelsus.” He bowed. “Knight Ferko.” He bowed again. “There has been an accident.”

  Both Knights exchanged a glance and walked around their desks.

  “Explain,” Ferko ordered, her angular features set.

  Her hair, which had been cropped close to her scalp when I’d first joined the board, was now an inch or two long. It was as black as ebony and shone with the light seeping through the narrow windows. Her dark eyes glinted with their usual malice.

  The Sentry commander turned to his two men and said, “Please, wait outside.” Once they’d left, he continued. “I am sorry to give you this news, but Rook Neculai is dead.”

  Silence fell over the room as the Knights assimilated the news. After a moment, Kelsus blinked and frowned at me, surely trying to figure out what my presence here had to do with Neculai’s death. I held his gaze, trying my best to hide my fear and wishing I had told my Quadrant leader how Rook Neculai had been harassing me for weeks. Maybe if I’d complained about the Rook’s advancements, my chances of getting out of this alive would have been better.

  “How?” Knight Ferko asked, showing no signs that the news affected her in any way. Neculai had been her Rook for over thirty years, and it seemed his unexpected passing made her feel absolutely nothing.

  “Rook Neculai was run over by a carriage,” the Sentry said. “He didn’t suffer. He died instantly.”

  Ferko narrowed her eyes and pursed her lips. “That is unfortunate.” It sounded as if she were talking about a bit of bad weather, a morning shower that spoiled someone’s picnic and not the death of one of her Board members. She turned her attention to me. “And what have you to do with all of this?”

  I bit my lower lip as my lungs ceased. This was it. There was no escape.

  “Well, I escorted her here because—” The Sentry started to answer, but I interrupted him.

  “Because it’s my fault,” I said, fighting the urge to lower my gaze and, instead, staring at Ferko right in the eye. “I pushed him.”

  Knight Kelsus flinched. It was a quick, almost imperceptible reaction, but he was surprised. Ferko’s face, on the other hand, revealed nothing.

  “It was in self-defense,” I added, keeping my words measured to ensure they didn’t betray my desperation. If they saw my fear, they would doubt me, and that would get me killed faster than anything else.

  “Self-defense,” Knight Ferko said, raising a perfect black eyebrow. “And we’re expected to believe that?” He turned to the Sentry. “Were there any witnesses?”

  “No, Knight Ferko,” the Sentry said. “I questioned everyone. No one noticed what happened.”

  Ferko huffed. “Very convenient.”

  “Knight Ferko,” Kelsus said, “with all due respect, we can neither believe nor disbelieve anything. Not until we’ve heard exactly what happened.”

  “Too bad Neculai isn’t here to tell his side of the story,” Ferko said in a tone dripping with sarcasm.

  “Indeed,” Kelsus said. “So our only recourse is to listen to First Pawn Flagfall and judge for ourselves whether or not we believe her.”

  Knight Ferko let out a drawn-out sigh. “Very well. Let’s hear it then.”

  She began to walk around her desk but stopped when Knight Kelsus said, “I propose we take this to Queen Lovina. One of her topped rank members has died, after all. She should be the one to make a decision.”

  What?! The Queen? I’d thought Knight Kelsus would help me, but instead, he was proposing to take me in front of the Queen. Bile burned in my throat, rising, choking me. I pressed a hand to my stomach.

  Images of Neculai’s brain matter smeared on the cobblestones flashed before my eyes. My stomach lurched, then I vomited on Knight Kelsus’s boots.

  I was going to meet Queen Lovina face to face.

  CHAPTER 5

  The afternoon sun shining on it, the White Palace looked as resplendent as a diamond, its four copper domes tinted green like emeralds. It was magnificent, and it presaged my death.

  Knight Ferko had wanted to bind my hands behind my back, but Kelsus had laughed at the idea.

  “What?” he had asked. “Are you afraid of a simple First Pawn, my dear Ferko? She’s weak a
nd slow. I don’t wish to embarrass myself by suggesting we’re afraid of her.”

  So, I was walking in front of them, my hands free at my sides, my desperate heart caged between my ribs. More than ever, I wished for wings to be able to soar above the palace walls and forget about Acedrex.

  Over and over, I kept playing in my mind the moment I had slipped a bloodshade leaf inside my mouth after waking up this morning. Had I really done it? Or had that been yesterday?

  You did, Bianca. You did!

  If I hadn’t, Rook Neculai would have been able to tell—not to mention the two Knights escorting me.

  A butler opened one half of the massive palace door and allowed us in. Pristine white marble practically blinded me as I walked into a foyer the size of Flagfall House, the home where I was born.

  Echos bounced off the walls as we followed the butler. Where? I didn’t know. I’d never been inside the palace and, despite my near-paralyzing nerves, I couldn’t help but gawk at the luxury surrounding me. I had, in my past life, visited homes and manors much more luxurious than what I was used to, but this was beyond anything I could have imagined. Even the Black Palace paled in comparison.

  Though King Maximus’s palace had been opulent and stately, it hadn’t truly been inviting. A sense of foreboding had hung over it, even the portraits on the walls—not to mention the petal-covered beds with their silken duvets.

  This was different. Nothing about the white walls, the soft, ornate rugs in soft cream colors, the vases of fresh flowers, and the paintings of foreign, sunny-dappled landscapes hanging from the walls made me feel anything but warmth.

  I marveled at everything. Every piece of furniture must cost a fortune and, yet, seemed utilitarian and lived in, as if the people who inhabited this place felt perfectly comfortable here.

  Quickly, it became clear to me that there was a woman’s touch in the interior design, a certain quality that everything had been arranged with care and without any fear or dislike for the light entering through the huge windows at the end of room, windows that must, in the mornings, allow sunlight to spill in like a river.

  “Bianca, this way,” Knight Kelsus said as I got distracted by the white sculpture of winged angel dominating the room.

  I nodded and, shaking myself, walked into the hall he had indicated. Our boots were silent on the carpeted floor. The walls were free of paintings and decorations, but it didn’t need them. The wallpaper was enough with its inlaid, golden roses as intricate as if they were real.

  Slowly, the natural light died and by the end of the hall, the sources of light turned out to be two lone sconces in the shape of flowers.

  We stopped in front of a set of filigree doors. Neither Knight Kelsus nor Knight Ferko knocked but, after a few seconds, a footman opened the door and let us in.

  I stepped into darkness, followed by the two Knights. I squinted, willing my eyes to adjust. A single candle glowed at the very back of what appeared to be a large room.

  Knight Kelsus placed a hand on my elbow and led me forward. The echo of our heels tapping against the floor reverberated through the room. As my eyes adjusted to the light of the lonely candle, a figure started taking shape.

  First, two bare feet peeking from under a dress. They rested on a small, upholstered stool. Then, delicate hands resting on the arms of a large, ornate throne made of carved wood and red velvet.

  Lastly, the Queen took shape, a slender woman with white hair and glowing red eyes. She sat straight, her head poised regally atop her long neck. Dark veins spidered over her pale face as candlelight reflected on her marble-like features.

  I was in the throne room, the Queen of Acedrex regarding me from her elevated position on the dais. Her fingers drummed on the wide arm of her throne. Her colorless hair was arranged in a beehive, making her head appear long as if it belonged to an insect and not a once-woman.

  Why was she here with all the curtains drawn and nothing but a candle to illuminate the space? She was supposed to love daylight. Did this mean her only Trove, Varujan, had finally died?

  “I thought you’d called because you’d found me a new Trove, Ferko,” the Queen said her contralto voice as deep as Knight Kelsus’s.

  A trickle of sweat slid down my back. If she only knew how right she was.

  “I will, my Queen,” The Decapitator said, bowing her head. “Just not today. My apologies for that.”

  “If not a Trove, what then?” Lovina asked, the glow of her red eyes shifting to me.

  “A First Pawn who has dishonored her contract,” Ferko said.

  “No,” Knight Kelsus corrected. “A First Pawn who needs her Queen’s fair judgment.”

  “Once more, you’re in disagreement, I see,” the Queen said.

  Ferko huffed while Kelsus simply inclined his head respectfully. There was silence for a moment.

  The Queen broke it with a bark of irritation. “Explain!”

  Ferko began. “Earlier this afternoon—”

  “No, not you. Her.” She pointed a lean finger in my direction.

  Knight Ferko pushed me forward. I staggered and nearly fell at the Queen’s feet. Straightening my jacket, I composed myself, my back so straight it would have made my governess proud. I stared at the Queen’s bare feet, unable to meet her unnatural gaze. Her toes were long and bony, their nails painted white to match her skin. Or was that their natural color?

  Lovina’s fingers drummed on her throne. I swallowed. Every sound seemed magnified in the large room as I pondered what to tell her. How much truth? How much lie?

  “This afternoon,” I began, talking around the throbbing heart that seemed to have gotten stuck in my throat, “I went down to the city to enjoy my free day. I was walking down the street when I noticed someone was following me.” I cleared my throat in an effort to sound confident and not like a lying coward. “It was Rook Neculai.”

  “Whom she promptly proceeded to kill,” Ferko said in an angry growl.

  “Did you happen to be present, Ferko?” the Queen asked, never taking her eyes off me and showing no reaction to the news that one of her Rooks was dead.

  “No, my Queen,” The Decapitator responded, sounding like nothing but a scared, squeaking mouse.

  “Then don’t speak again, unless I ask you to do so. Continue, please.”

  I did as I was told. “When he realized I had spotted him, he came directly to me and forced me against the wall. He said he had an offer for me, said I should be his ally.”

  One of the Queen’s pale eyebrows went up. “You, a fresh First Pawn, ally yourself with a thirty-year veteran Rook?”

  She seemed to find the idea ludicrous, and it was. Neculai’s interest in me had had nothing to do with me helping him become Bishop as he’d told me. That had been an empty proposition, something he’d hoped would get me under his sheets. I shivered at the mere thought.

  But dare I mention this to Lovina? Would she blame me for not going to Knight Kelsus with a complaint and, instead, killing her Rook?

  “He wanted to bed you,” she said, figuring it all without my help. Her red gaze traveled the length of my body as if appraising my qualities. “That is the only reasonable explanation for his offer.”

  I nodded, seeing that it would do me no good to deny it. “I refused both offers,” I said. “I am loyal to my Quadrant.” I glanced back toward Knight Kelsus. “Rook Neculai wasn’t happy and threatened to kill me if I didn’t agree.”

  Squeezing my eyes shut, I avoided the White Queen’s piercing gaze. I was afraid she would spot the lie. Neculai had never threatened my life. Instead, he’d said he had a trap laid out for Knight Kelsus, one that would have helped Neculai defeat and replace my Quadrant leader. On top of that, he had known about Nyro, had seen my interest in him, and that was something no one here needed to know.

  “I feared for my life,” I added, my insides twisting with the memory of all of Neculai’s blood and flesh smeared on the pavement.

  I considered my next words very carefully. If
I admitted I’d killed him on instinct, without thinking, would the Queen condemn me for being weak and allowing the heat of the moment to drive my hand? And if, instead, I said that my actions had been purposeful, would she condemn me for openly breaking the contract?

  Did an option that could save my life even exist?

  I pondered for a second. The Queen was a cold-blooded creature, wasn’t she? Maybe she would be willing to forgive a kindred spirit.

  You have nothing else to lose, Bianca. You’ve lost everything already, I told myself, though it felt like a lie.

  This had been true enough a couple of weeks ago before Nyro kissed me. But, as ludicrous as it seemed, hope had sprouted in my heart since that moment. It was nothing but a tiny bud, like the ones Talyssa and I used to plant in our garden. But I knew well how, with only a small bit of care, a bud could grow and turn into something wonderful.

  You have nothing else to lose, I stubbornly repeated before I met Lovina’s gaze and said, “I acted on self-defense and pushed him in front of a speeding carriage.”

  The Queen rose to her feet and descended the dais steps. She stood right in front of me, her nostrils flaring, her head cocked slightly to one side. Her eyes seemed to dive into mine, making me feel exposed as if she could read all the lies on my face, hear them in my thundering heart, and smell them in my fear.

  I held my own, somehow keeping my chin high, even though I wanted to curl up at her feet and beg.

  “You’re a brave little thing,” she said as if I were a child and not her same height. “You’ve only been here...” she turned to Knight Kelsus, “how long?”

  “Four and a half months, my Queen,” he said.

  “Four and a half months,” she repeated, “and you’re already First Pawn and have perfectly positioned yourself to become Rook.”

  “Rook?” Ferko echoed, sounding outraged. “What do you mean? She just killed Neculai.”

  “Neculai, Neculai,” the Queen said, turning on her heel and walking toward the lonely candle. “In all his years as a Rook, do you know how many Troves he brought to me?”